justanotherfan said:
A few thoughts I had last night as I watched.
I put this in the game thread, but wanted to mention it here as well. KU can’t play a lineup with Doke, Garrett and Lawson all on the floor together. Garrett’s man sagging off him really clogs the floor up in that lineup. Garrett has to play when either Lawson or Doke is the lone big on the floor.
So you’re saying Garrett is a 4, basically. I agree.
KU needs to run more PnR with Doke, and less straight post ups. Doke is improving as a passer, but he isn’t to the point where he can pick out open guys against the grain of the defense. I’m not saying KU should never post Doke up. Just it should be limited to a handful of times per game at most.
I think it may serve us better to let Doke continue to have a gravitational pull and teach him to become a better passer than try to teach him to be a good PnR big at this point. I worry about moving screens and him being able to catch the ball on the move like that. I think we can get him to the point where he throws the right pass.
KU should invert its offense every now and then and post up Grimes. I’ve noticed the last few games that Grimes, when he gets a smaller player on him, will go to the post and call for the basketball. Because Lawson is so skilled, that’s a great opportunity to invert the offense and let Lawson play on the perimeter while Grimes goes to the block. KU could force some teams out of their rotation if they were to do that more.
This is spot on.
KU may even want to think about posting Garrett against smaller players, then letting him turn and face up guys on the extended post. It’s a way to allow him to challenge the defense without needing an improved jumper.
This is also spot on.
When KJ Lawson plays, he needs to play with Dedric, and needs to play inside while Dedric plays high. His jumper has been shaky, but I think if he plays a token 5 spot and uses his quickness, he can be a MUA on the offensive glass, or force a bigger, slower player away from the basket to guard Dedric, who has been destroying guys like that on the dribble drive.
KJ should really just not play, imo. He can’t score. He can’t really defend. He doesn’t really box out. He just isn’t very good. Just keep subbing in Big Dave or go 4 out with Garrett.
Charlie Moore should play off the ball as a shooter rather than as a PG. He’s too erratic with his handling, and too prone to look for his own shot to run the point on this team. Move him off the ball so he can look for his own shot.
Chuckie should really see a minutes reduction. He is bad. Self didn’t even put him in a point when Dotson was in foul trouble at one point. So I think he agrees with your statement. I would bet come March, CM will be lucky to see 5 mpg.
We need to see more PnR action overall. Grimes and Dotson should both be getting into the PnR with D. Lawson and Azubuike. We aren’t see this enough and that could create some huge mismatches to exploit. We could even see some creativity with a D. Lawson/Grimes PnR with Grimes as the screener to allow Dedric to get moving against a smaller defender. You will often see Golden State run that action with Thompson and Draymond Green or Kevin Durant. It’s deadly because if those guys get a half step on their bigger defender on a non switch, they get a layup. If they get a switch, they can bully a smaller guy inside. Leave Thompson and he can hit a three or drive on a late closeout. Obviously Grimes isn’t the shooter Thompson is, but that action could create a lot of decisions that college defenses may not be able to execute.
I’d love to see Dotson and Lawson develop a PnR game together. Dotson’s speed and Lawson’s versatility offer the best combo imo. A Tyshawn/T-Rob like combo that at times was unstoppable.
We definitely need to find a way to score more efficiently though. Either through different offensive sets or better shooting. The pieces are there. I’m sure Self has a plan.
